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Jim Carroll

Music, Life and everything else

The re-up – from Belem to bedlam

(1) Who killed Sam Sparro? Well, it was certainly not the Lovebox people who had him on the bill for Marlay Park last weeked on their website from the get-go. So, lets try to get this straight. Sparro was announced …

Jim Carroll

jimcarroll

Sun, Aug 24, 2008, 21:13

(1) Who killed Sam Sparro? Well, it was certainly not the Lovebox people who had him on the bill for Marlay Park last weeked on their website from the get-go. So, lets try to get this straight. Sparro was announced for Lovebox in Dublin. Cometh the hour, though, not cometh the man. There was no sign of him on the running order for the show, there was no word from the promoters about the cancellation and the gig was not even mentioned on his MySpace. Like, what the hell happened there? Will the hundreds (nah, thousands) of Sparro fans who bought a ticket for the show be able to get a refund because he didn’t show? Is Sparro the new Prince? And, while we’re at it, any other stories from the Box Of Love people would like to share with the group?

(2) More hell. Does anyone know what the hell is going on at State magazine? In terms of weird posts, this one takes the gold, silver and bronze medals (though some may be calling for a dope test). Is this the curse of Abbagate?

(3) Hot as hell? We’re on a roll here, people, stick with us. Belem was hot. Proper tropical humidity all day long except for the two crazy monsoon showers. Only mad dogs and Irishmen would go for a stroll in this kind of Amazonian heat. Actually, hang on, the dogs gave it a miss too. Belem was where I got a taste of tecnobrega, the completely insane favela pop music which ducks and dives, cuts and pastes, robs and steals from all over the place. Culchie baile funk – if only Diplo had come here instead of Sao Paulo and he had taken a ride with the taxi-driver we had on Sunday morning (I reckon he was one of the Senna family). By the by, the tecnobrega scene is a part of the music industry that is using piracy in a very interesting way.

(5) Hell, no. The Liquid Liquid show has been pulled. Not enough people prepared to pay for tickets, methinks.

(6) The Brazilian adventure is now at an end, with our last seminar taking place on Saturday in Belem. It really did feel like a band on tour, complete with moaning, whinges, in-jokes, superb catering, tantrums and some fantastic star performances. What we need now is an agent to book us some shows in Argentina, Mexico and Chile. Any takers? Muito obrigada to my travelling companions for sharing the trip.

(7) Hell, no (parte dois). Seems like Lenny is also not coming to town. A mooted gig at Dublin’s 02 had been listed on his website for December 1, but it has now been yanked from the list. Maybe Lenny has made enough cash from his Irish dates this year to pay for a new hat and some nice Christmas presents for the folks.

(8) Hey, any reports from the gig by the other Lenny last week? How many people showed up for it? Did it rain? Was it ironic? Any of those MCD folks who usually hang out here care to give us a copy of the Ticketmaster manifest for the show? C’mon guys, I keep showing you mine so you should show me yours.

(9) Fiddy, can you spare a dime? Here’s why 50 Cent is the richest cash cow in hip-hop, even if he never spits into a mic again. Many of us hope his people at Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are telling him to give up the rapping and stick with the mining.

(10) Did you know that girls are not supposed to go to gigs? You didn’t? Well, you’re missing all the fun over at Chez Rocks.

(11) If there’s a hell below, we’re all going to go. Have a read of this fine piece by Hugh Linehan on Paul Durcan’s strop with the Catholic Church (or as Hugh puts it “the unattractive spectacle of ageing irreconcilables hurling juvenile insults at Catholic bishops for doing what Catholic bishops are supposed to do. And worse, in verse”).

Much to quote from it, including this:

“But there does appear to be a generation which, despite having raged against the church since puberty, seems unwilling just to let it go its own way. Perhaps due to unpleasant formative experiences at the hands of the Catholic education system of the 1950s and 1960s, it seems to regress to the most tedious and banal adolescent abuse whenever the subject comes up.”

(12) And finally, keeping with the religious theme, we hear that POD Concerts have brought in a large consignment of Child of Prague statues ahead of next weekend. The word according to the weatherman, for those who still have faith in that particular testament, is as follows:

“Thursday will be largely dry and bright with sunny spells. Feeling very mild, even warm with highest temperatures ranging 18 to 23 degrees, again warmest across the southern half of the country, with mainly moderate southwesterly breezes persisting.”

Here’s a video from the Stradbally-bound Wilco to get folks in the mood. Hey, anyone know any good songs about wellingtons and mud?

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